----- forwarded message ----- Date: Thu, 22 Nov 2001 21:10:39 -0800 From: radtimes <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: India to destroy illegally grown GM crops
[radman asks: Is Monsanto a part of this story?] -------- India to destroy illegally grown GM crops <http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/13424/story.htm> REUTERS NEWS SERVICE INDIA: November 23, 2001 AHMEDABAD, India - Authorities in India's western Gujarat state have begun procurement of illegally grown gene-engineered cotton from farmers to prevent replanting of the seeds, officials said yesterday. "We have asked all district collectors to take steps to procure BT cotton reaching markets. We plan to procure BT cotton to the extent possible," P.K Ghosh, principal secretary Forests and Environment in Gujarat, told Reuters. The government has already procured about 120 tonnes of bacillus thuringiensis (BT) cotton, he said. Earlier this month, several hundred farmers in Gujarat, the country's largest cotton growing state, were ordered to hand over genetically modified (GM) cotton crops to the government because commercial production of GM crops is illegal. The discovery of illegal growing of BT cotton had triggered a nation-wide debate among environmentalists and pro-farmer lobbies about the government's stand on commercialisation of GM crops. India does not allow commercial production of genetically modified crops, but has allowed a few companies to carry out field trials under government supervision. While green activists have called for a 10-year moratorium on introduction of GM crops, pro-farmer lobbies have questioned the delay in giving a green signal for gene-engineered crops that could multiply yields and reduce input costs. Farmers in Gujarat planted BT cotton, sold by a private firm, on an estimated 11,000 hectares (27,000 acres). Ghosh said the cotton procured by the government would be ginned and seeds separated and destroyed. "The objective behind the exercise is to prevent farmers from using the seeds for sowing next year," he said. Though India is a leading cotton growing country, the per-hectare yield is only around 300 kg compared with the world average of around 650 kg. Officials said the government would launch a campaign among the farmers to warn them against possible hazards of planting GM seeds on health and environment. "We have nothing against GM crops, but as long as it is not legally permitted we have to caution farmers against planting them," Ghosh said.
